The True Faith
The True Faith are a religious order, originating in Atlantea but now found throughout the Parzifan realms. They worship all the Toltoni gods, save for Balzot. Focus The True Faith (or The Faith) worship all the benevolent Tolton Gods- that is, Vinwe, Eleniel, Nenila, Kemwe, Kelvinn, Olvana, Gurthil, Melina and Dral. They also believe in Balzot, the Fallen, though he is considered to be the source of pure evil. Symbol A globe, surrounded by the 10 rays of the Toltoni. Prime Stats EM/IN Skills The True Faith are generic priests and paladins, with few specializations. As such, they receive no special skills and can develop at their own will. However, they learn the following skills at 1/2: *Channeling *Transcend Armour *Demon Lore. Customary Garb The Clerics wear white robes, emblazoned with the symbol of their faith. The Paladins wear similar attire, but often have silver armour. Membership Any race of either sex can be a True Faith, though they must uphold the values of the Toltoni, and reject Balzot. A member must have an IN of 90 or over, and not have any criminal convictions. Restrictions A member must dedicate himself wholly to the Church, even living at the temple- as a result, a Cleric or Paladin cannot be a member of another religious group; even though they respect and officially recognize all the other Parzifan priesthoods, they demand undivided worship. Benefits The True Faith are respected throughout all of Iaurdor, and can travel unmolested most places. Few citizens would even think about attacking a member of the Faith. Often they enjoy free board and food wherever they go, for the sake of a blessing. A high-ranking Faith can command priests of lower levels than him, from other priesthoods. For example, Starlords and Bringers. Structure and Purpose The clerics start off as Acolytes, and often work under the command of higher cleric. Their duties are to study the lore of the Faith, as well as learn meekness by doing menial tasks. After two years, if the Acolyte has been well-behaved and has learned much about his faith, he is promoted to Brother. A brother often travels from place to place, and usually has to make a pilgrimage to the Holylands. He is usually given a small amount of money, and has to be on the road for at least 2 years, doing good and helping those in need. Afterwards, he is given an Acolyte of his own. If the Brother shows true Faith, he will eventually be promoted to Priest, and given charge of his own temple. The high Priest, selected from their ranks, rules over the church from their High Temple (once in Ardadain, Angost, and now moved to the Holy Land. The current High Priest is Aratar Goldspear, from Malidor. Rank is determined by clothing: *Acolyte- Yellow Robes *Brother- White Robes *Priest- White Robes with yellow trimmings *High-Priest- As above, but with a long white cape. Paladins have a less rigid structure. The first rank is known as Templar, and the paladins merely protect the temple, and study the books. Upon promotion to Squire of the Faith they escort the Brothers on their pilgrimage, helping them and protecting them. After that they are promoted to Paladin of the Faith- this is when they become independent, and are free to roam where they will. Many travel the land protecting pilgrims, are fighting in Holy Wars, or just doing good. Every year they must return to their temple of training to be judged. If a Paladin is exceptional he is sometimes promoted to Champion. The Champions protect the Holy Waters and serve as the warriors of the High Temple. IN war, the Champions often lead units of Paladins. A Paladin, instead of being a Champion, can ask to be made a Priest. In this case he is trained in the administration of the faith, and given his own temple. Rank is determined as follows: *Templars- Black Robes *Paladin- White Robes and Armour. *Champion- As above, and allowed to wear own heraldric devices. The True Faith are dedicated to the spiritual well-being of the people, and to the teachings of the Gods. They long to bring peace to mankind, remove the shadow from Gaiana. They preach against Balzot, and try to eradicate evil, either spiritually or physically. Their main approach is that of charity- they wander the world, doing good for those who need it, and expecting little in return. Weekly services are performed at the temples, preaching from the Great Books to convince people to follow the Gods. The True Faith are less prone to adventuring than other priesthoods, save for their tenure as Brothers. Most dedicate themselves to spiritual matters and meditation, and writing scholarly texts on the Gods. When they do travel, they go from town-to-town, usually where there are no temple of the Faith. One of their primary functions is as Healers. Most citizens seek the Faith out for weddings, funerals, and namings, as well as other blessings- worshippers prefer the blessings of all the Gods rather than just one. However, the Faith are more strict and one must prove his dedication to all the Gods before they will perform a ceremony. Holy Days The True Faith celebrate all the religious holidays of the Toltoni, each one dedicated to a particular God. Each festival is usually a loud affair, with fireworks and great feasts. Usually they let the dominant faith of the country deal with their own holy day, not wanting to upstage or anger the priesthood. For example, on 23rd June, the Faith in Ardadain do not throw a feast for Eleniel, letting the dominant Starlords do it. However they will have a mass. On the other Ardanian religious holidays, the Faith will take an active part. 1st January-''' Alqar, festival of the swan, and of Dana and Khanus. '2nd February-' Kelvas, the festival of Kelvinn. 21st March- Mithras, the festival of Kemwe. '1st May-' Melra, the festival of Melina '21st May-' Kalas, a minor festival. The day the Death Queen was killed. '23rd June-' Gilanor, the festival of Eleniel '2nd August- '''Olvest, festival of Olvanna, and the harvest. '''21st September-' Gaeran, the festival of Nenila '1st November-' Moran, festival of Gurthil. '21st December-' Vinya, the festival of Vinwe '22nd December-' Ria Drala, the festival of Dral Spell Lists The Faith Clerics have access to the following lists: *All Cleric Lists *One Druid List '''or One Magician List (not Fire Law) The Paladins have the following: *All Paladin Lists *1 Beastmaster List *Elemental Ways (Warrior-Mage) Background Options Magic Weapon (+5) 10 Promotion 15 1-6 Healing Herbs 20 Holy Weapon 50 Category:Tolton Category:Atlantea Category:Groups Category:Religious Category:Vinwe Category:Eleniel Category:Nenila Category:Kemwe Category:Dral Category:Balzot Category:Kelvinn Category:Olvana Category:Melina Category:Gurthil Category:Clerics Category:Paladins